I have come to transform Lusaka Province – Lusambo

Tue, 20 Feb 2018 09:23:58 +0000

By SIMON MUNTEMBA

I will not tolerate laziness from any local authority officials and will ensure that even Lusaka Mayor Wilson Kalumba works to people’s expectations, Bowman Lusambo has declared. 

Mr Lusambo who was last week swapped with former Lusaka Province Minister, Japhen Mwakalombe, made the remarks in Lusaka yesterday after conducting a familiarization tour of the gutted City market and the central business district (CBD).

Mr Lusambo strongly emphasised that he had come to transform the face of Lusaka Province charging that there would be no time for civic leaders to wear neck ties and lazing around in offices.

“The other thing is that I want to make sure that all the people who are working in the local authority are not just sitting in the offices. There will be no more staying in those offices, no more wearing ties. The people of Zambia voted for us not to put on ties in those offices but to wear gum boots and overalls to work for them,” he said.

He added, “So you will be seeing all of us here, myself, the mayor, the DC all of them, you will be seeing them working every day out here. We will be going in the offices for just 2 minutes because most of the job is outside the office, said Mr Lusambo.

While at City market, Mr. Lusambo directed all traders conducting business outside the gutted city market to immediate vacate and start trading from inside.

Mr. Lusambo who is Kabushi PF member of Parliament in Ndola further disclosed that he will meet with private cooperating partners to find a temporal solution to the roofing problem at city market which was gutted last year.

Mr. Lusambo assured the marketers that government will, as a short term measure, acquire the tents to cover the roof that got burnt during the inferno to protect them and their goods from torrential rains.

He disclosed that government has come up with a law that does not allow street vending hence the need for all traders to be in the markets.

“The most important thing for us as government is to make sure that we protect our people. The government of President Edgar Lungu has come up with the policy that bans street vending.

“We are trying by all means to make sure that we provide alternative trading places for our people. But after visiting and touring city market, yes I have seen that as a priority number one, we have to provide tents to protect our people and to that effect, I will make sure that I contact our colleagues from the private sector if we can acquire some tents so that we can help our marketers here,” Mr Lusambo stated.

He added, “I have seen that there is enough space inside and those trading on the corridors should get inside the market and I will come in the afternoon to check and I want to find this place cleared.”

Mr Lusambo directed the city market committee to ensure that all those trading from the corridors were allocated space inside the market.